We’re all in This Together: Blockchain Voting System for Apartment Blocks in Russia

The next stage of blockchain usage by Russian officials has arrived, and it’s called Digital Home. Now, people in housing blocks will be able to vote on matters that affect the entire block using Active Citizen, which sits on the Ethereum blockchain.

Transparent Voting at all Levels of Society

It might come as a surprise to many, bearing in mind the accusations levelled at Russia over the years, including tampering with the US election results and rigging their own repeatedly, that Moscow has become the global champion of blockchain-based democracy. But this represents a second significant step forward, not only extending voting options beyond city-wide votes to reach citizens in their own homes, but also taking another step forward that might provide the rest of the world with a hint that the first round of blockchain-based voting worked well.

Residents will be able to vote on infrastructural changes that directly affect them, as citizens of Moscow have been able to vote on a range of tabled motions for the last few months. However, it remains to be seen if serious issues that involve massive financial implications will be extended to citizens in this way so soon; of late, votes have been more trivial.

An Olive Branch or a Threat?

Of course, the cynics out there might not look on this so favourably. There have long been concerns that blockchain could effectively be “weaponized” by governments, allowing for shadier dealings and the circumventing of international financial issues, or even law. In the wrong hands, it could prove to be a powerful tool – as seen in Venezuela at the moment, where their state-run cryptocurrency has supposedly raised $5 billion.

However, for the moment, this would appear to be a toe in the water for Russians, and citizens are reacting well, for now at least.